Kolkata: The Election Commission of India is set to delete around 30 lakh names from West Bengal’s electoral rolls as part of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision, after digitisation of enumeration forms flagged large numbers of deceased, duplicate and untraceable voters. Of these, about 16 lakh are recorded as dead, while the rest are voters who cannot be traced, appear more than once, or have permanently shifted out of the state, with officials warning that the figure could rise as the digitisation exercise is completed.
According to the office of the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), enumeration data for roughly 6.73 crore voters has been digitised so far, covering about 88 per cent of the 7.66 crore-strong electorate on the rolls as on 27 October. Officials said a clearer picture of the final deletions will emerge on 9 December, when the draft voter list is published, after which claims and objections can be filed.
The revision drive has been marred by complaints that booth-level officers (BLOs) are under “political pressure” from the ruling Trinamool Congress and “administrative pressure” from the state government, prompting the Election Commission to step in with additional safeguards. A retired IAS officer, Subrata Gupta, has been appointed special observer for the SIR in West Bengal, backed by 11 other IAS officers, to review the process on the ground and report to the Union government.
The poll panel has also written to West Bengal Director General of Police Rajeev Kumar and Kolkata Police Commissioner Manoj Verma, directing them to ensure that BLOs are not threatened or coerced by political workers while carrying out the revision. Separately, the Commission has asked state CEO Manoj Kumar Agarwal to fully implement instructions on setting up polling stations in slums, high-rises and gated complexes so that voters across different types of settlements have easier access to booths.
(Inputs from IANS)